Chapter Twenty: Disasters

Negan supervised as the crew started to unload the trucks. Kianga looked around with slight melancholy before walking into the Sanctuary. The Saviors had their weapons out just in case they picked up a stray Alexandrian like before. Carl's attack had people shaken. There were whispers about how Negan handled it. Some felt like he let the Grimes family off easy; now that they were revealed to be in-laws, the gossip would continue. The search proved they just had their goods; they started unloading as usual. Kianga held her head high and strut into the building. She didn't notice the atmosphere of the Saviors. Kianga was willfully numb to the world outside of herself. She revealed in the safety Negan provided her. Nothing could hurt her. She smiled genuinely, happy instead of insouciant. She had a family; the world she created, previously limited to her possessions and maintaining Negan's interest, had increased tenfold. Her life wasn't meaningless. She thought about the future and its possibilities. She could visit Michonne, get accustomed to the outside world again, share stories and gossip, maybe she'd even hold that baby again. She'd do more at the Sanctuary too. She'd do anything for Michonne to stay alive. The possibilities made her want to dance; she was that excited. She felt like she could soar!

Kianga walked into the brothel. The five of them weren't friends, but cordiality kept them from being enemies. Kianga had no opinions of them. At least, she hadn't in the past. Before the trip to Alexandria, all that mattered was comfort. Now that changed. Kianga had always been materialistic, she was the baby of a wealthy family after all, but now she wanted relationships. Maybe she'd strengthen bonds with her sister wives. She could barely wait to tell them the big news. However, everyone was solemn. Amber was weeping in Sherry's lap. It wasn't anything like she imagined. "What's going on?"

Francesca, Kianga's best friend, responded, "Amber was caught fucking Mark."

Kianga frowned. All her thoughts of being a happy polygamist family died. Infidelity effected the entire group. "You stupid bitch."

"She feels bad enough, no need for criticism from Negan's new favorite." Sherry defended.

"Shut the fuck up Sherry. This is bad for everyone! I am already sore! I do not want rounds of angry, passive-aggressive sex." Kianga growled. Negan wore his emotions on his dick. When he was happy he was able to go multiple rounds and was generous with their pleasure. When he was sad, sex was short and dissatisfying. When he was angry, sex was aggressive, painful, and sometimes scary. Kianga could remember when Sherry cheated; he choked her to the point where she was unable to use the safe word. She hissed sitting down.

Tanya was also thinking about the time Sherry cheated and agreed with Kiki. She tried to smile at Amber for support, but the thought of having to touch Negan made her sick. Now she'd have to do it double time. If it was anything like last time, she'd run to Dr. Carson and beg him to deem her medically incapable. The last wife, Francesca, was done with the situation. Like Kianga she didn't care what happened as long as she was fed and housed. She didn't care what Amber or any of them did. She walked over to Kianga and unzipped her dress. "You're overdressed."

"I should take a bath."

"After your bath, do you want to play cards?"

"Sure. Then, I can tell you about Alexandria. The best thing happened to me. I'm surprised I'm not screaming it from the rooftops!"

Kianga took a short bath, getting out before she pruned. She didn't even bother getting dressed before she returned to her best friend with gossip. All the other wives listened as Kianga told the story about finding her sister, the quaint town Alexandria, seeing the other communities, and fucking Negan in Carl's bed. Amber felt relief hearing the story. "...Was he at least in a good mood leaving Alexandria?"

"He was in the best mood," Kianga answered honestly. "You fucked that up."

Right on queue, Negan burst in. "God fucking damn it, Amber."

"She knows she fucked up, Negan. Go easy on her."

"I ever hit any of you? Calm the fuck down."

"She just made a mistake okay? You know the transition isn't easy for us-"

"Sherry, will you please step the fuck aside so I can talk to Amber?"

Negan bent down. He gave his blonde wife the most pleasant smile he could muster. "Haven't I always told you girls your stay here is completely voluntary? I don't want anybody here who doesn't want to be. I let you girls do so much, but Amber what can't you do?"

Amber kept her head down and replied. "Cheat on you."

"Exactly fucking right! You can't fucking cheat on me, Amber! So what the fuck?!" Negan stood up. He took a deep breath and sighed. "I'm sure you've had plenty of time to think about this. And so have I. So I'm going to do us both a favor and give you what you fucking want. Get dressed, and get out! Get the fuck out of here! I'm divorcing you."

Negan's wives gasped. Amber was petrified. "No Negan, no! I'm sorry! Baby, I'm sorry! Don't do this to me! I love you, Negan!" She fell at his feet. She remembered what labor was like. She wasn't even strong enough to clean the factory thoroughly. Her labor barely earned her points to feed herself. She definitely didn't have points for a bed. She was always so cold, tired, hungry, and in pain. She didn't want to go back to that. "Negan I beg of you! I'll never do it again! You didn't do this to Sherry-"

"Leave my name out of this!" The brunette was scared she was next. She didn't want to go back out there and scrounge for points either. As much as she loved Dwight, she loved herself more.

Negan ignored her presence. He seemed quite jovial. He was in his own world, a world where he was single and ready to mingle despite the fact that he had four wives. There were mixed responses from his four remaining spouses. Tanya and Sherry seemed scared. Francesca seemed interested at first but then was bored with the whole thing. She wasn't going to cheat and Amber's absence meant more stuff. Kianga's eyes were full of mirth and approval. That was odd, usually, Kianga was just as apathetic as her friend. He signaled her to follow him. She sighed, stopped her card game and followed Negan to another room. "Close the door."

She did as she was told. "...I didn't do anything wrong did I?"

"No. Fuck no. Sit down."

Kianga looked at him warily. Seeing him dismiss Amber had been fun, but it was unpredictable. She was a little nervous and it showed. "The rules are changing."

"No, they're fucking not. I just stopped being a chance giving fuck giving out chances like it's a fucking giveaway. I think you can understand this."

"I understand everything you do."

"...you can stop flirting. In front of people, oh God fuck yes, but when we're alone just be Kianga... What the fuck are you and Michonne's last names?"

Was this a trick question? She was tempted to say Negan. They were all Negan, however, she didn't think he was trying to trap her. Her loyalty wasn't being questioned. "Anthony."

"Fuck really? I thought it would be something a little more fucking exotic considering. No offense baby. You know I don't see race. Hmmm, Michonne and Kianga Anthony. what do you fucking know..." Negan was intrigued. "I'd like to get to know you a little better, Kiki."

Kianga stopped feeling self-conscious. "I want you to know me."

Rick watched as the members of his community scattered throughout Alexandria. They boarded windows and other points of weakness in their homes. Tara and Olivia disbursed rations. It almost looked as if they were going to war. Rick hoped they worked as seamless when that time came.

The sky looked like a gray sheet. He knew any moment the rain would fall. A strong, eerie wind blew. The symbolism wasn't lost on him. There was a storm coming; it would be big. The council spent a day organizing their efforts to find supplies: sending groups to dismantle abandoned homes for viable brick, metal, and wood, preparing and distributing sandbags, and storing food and water. Sasha, Tobin, and Eugene inspected homes and buildings. The Monroes had a list of the progress and had a list of every citizen and their location. Rick had no doubt Alexandria would be secured by the first raindrop. Michonne wiped the sweat from her brow and walked to Rick. "You good?"

"Yeah, just thankin'" Michonne grunted and let her mind wander a little too. She thought about how stupid it was that the community wanted to keep that church standing for history. They needed the wood. Without Gabriel, it no longer had a function. Michonne also wondered if it would flood. Daryl seemed to think so. He was actually in a home, Eric and Aaron's. Her community started going into their homes and closing up. She didn't see many out beside herself and Rick. Sasha was going to be their sole lookout during the storm. She'd become restless since Tyreese's death; she barely slept and became anal when it came to defense. Michonne wasn't sure how she could console her friend. She couldn't and didn't want to relate. Michonne hoped her sister was okay. She hoped her sister was being sheltered and not reckless. Her sister was the type to dive into flood waters if she had the whim to go swimming. She shivered. "What's on your mind?"

"Nothing productive. Nothing good. I should be thinking about the phenomenal sex we're going to have when the children are sleep."

Rick smirked. He wrapped his arm around his wife's waist. "Well, now I'm thankin' about that myself."

Their lips met. He could feel her skin prickle with goosebumps under her thin long sleeve shirt. "It's so calm now."

"Yeah..." Rick replied contemplatively.

Rick and Michonne soaked in the brief spell of quiet. They'd be spending the storm with a little girl and a baby. They wouldn't have silence for days, but he was pleased with that. They wouldn't have it any other way. Michonne realized she would have it differently. She thought of Andre. She wallowed in regret. She should have taken Andre with her. Kids were adaptable; Judith learned fast. Adults were harder to change. Why couldn't Mike have adapted like Rick? Mike had been a fighter Pre-Turn; he battled with the worst of them in Washington. Michonne was a corporate lawyer. They'd been a power couple. When that world ended, Mike became everything he worked so hard not to be: useless, clueless, and a burden leeching off other's hard work. Once he realized the government he'd worked and believed in wasn't coming, he gave into his weaknesses. Michonne's biggest regret was that she hadn't been blind to it. She thought her son would be safer under Mike while he was inebriated at camp that with her in the unknown. Now that she was given a second chance, she'd never make that mistake again. Fortunately, there were huge contrasts between her relationship with Mike from her relationship with Rick. She knew all of Rick: his strengths, weaknesses, his hopes, dreams, and demons. She regretted fate didn't put them together from the start. Andre would have still been alive.

Tara jogged toward them with a large clear parka on. Thunder rumbled and a few drops of rain began to fall. "Everyone is secure with food. I'm going to run home. Be safe you guys."

"You too," Rick answered. Michonne didn't respond.

The wind started to pick up. Michonne's locks whipped violently to her left. The sky seemed to darken, almost threatening to burst with overwhelming bouts of rain. The two of them walked to their home, securing it behind them. Judith was on the couch buried in a comforter. Hearing the door, peeked her head out to check her surroundings. "Mommy?" She forced her arms out of the comforter and signaled for Michonne to hold her. Michonne indulged her; Judith clung to her tightly. "I was waigh'n on you. I don' like storms. 'member?"

"What happened?" Rick asked concerned. He wondered why his spunky daughter was so frightened.

"Mommy cried," Judith answered matter-of-factly.

Michonne saw the look on Rick's face and grimaced. He always wanted to save her from things that already happened. It didn't matter now, right? He was still waiting, searching for the answer. He'd missed so much. It did matter. He wanted to know everything that happened when they were separated. Even more than that, Rick wanted to know all of her. Michonne's face twitched awkwardly and decided to speak. "We were on our way to DC. Things..." Michonne didn't know how to easily describe the state they were in. They were dying. "weren't good..." Curiosity danced across Rick's face, but he stayed silent. He never pushed her. "We were starving, dehydrated, and sick. There was a large storm, so we hunkered down in a barn. Walkers swarmed us. We tried to keep the door closed, but between them and the wind, there was no way. I thought that was it. My shoulder was busted and we were all so tired. I don't even remember how many there were."

"Mommy killed all the wakkas! And she cried!"

Judith was right. Michonne slashed at the walkers, half-blind and in debilitating pain. She cried in frustration while she was fighting them, but once she won, it was despair. Even after winning that fight Michonne had no idea how they were going to make it another night without a fresh source of food and water. Plus, they were being rained on which meant they would get sicker and the discomfort prevented rest. How Judith remembered that Michonne wouldn't know. She was a baby then. "Aaron approached us the next day."

Rick yet again flooded with love and respect for Michonne. It was hard enough keeping his experience crew alive. Michonne had a weak man and children. He was quite sure she knew how he met Aaron. In retrospect, Rick wasn't proud of it. He knocked Aaron out, taunted him; the only reason Rick followed Aaron was his promise to find the others a home. Plus he'd witnessed Aaron's love for Eric; it got him to lower his guard. Rick's mind wandered to the days before the world ended. He was a fairly conservative man and didn't agree with gay marriage. Now, he saw Aaron and Eric were just as he saw his own partnership.

The house creaked as the wind howled. Judith buried herself into Michonne's chest. "When I was younger, Jeff and I used to play board games or try to spook out mother during storms. Her screams used to sound like someth'n out of a vintage horror film."

"Who's Jeff, daddy?" She peeked from Michonne's chest just to find the answer to her question.

"My little brother. He isn't with us anymore." The way Rick explained it, no one from the outside could surmise that Rick was the one who'd done it.

"Why would you wanna scare your mommy?"

Rick shrugged. "I don't know baby. I guess that's just what boys do."

Judith frowned at her dad and decided to tell Michonne a secret. She pressed her face against Michonne's ear and whispered, "boys are stupid. Don' tell daddy." Michonne felt her sentence more than she heard it.

Rick chuckled at Judith's secret. The cute moment they had was cut short by Carl and Chenelle running down the stairs. They went to the bathroom and shut the door. Right before Carl's parents could question it, an argument started.

Carl whispered angrily. "Sometimes I wonder if you even care at all."

"W-why would you say something like that?"

"Moms don't get to take off. Parents don't get time-outs no matter what. We needed you-"

"No! No! No! No! I'm sorry- NO! I'm not sorry! I'm always with him! You're out doing God knows what-"

"I'm working!"

"Who cares! Don't get mad at me because you had to parent for once!"

"Don't you even dare! I take care of him!"

Rick opened the bathroom door and glared at the two new parents. "Knock it off!"

"..."

"..."

"I get that the two of you are findin' it hard to co-parent, but y'all aren't about to do this now. Not in front of us, not in front of your sister."

Carl felt bad. "Sorry."

Chenelle looked down on the ground and moved uncomfortably. "I apologize. Not like the sorry I told Carl. I actually mean this one."

Rick looked at the two in confusion. "Did you guys really come downstairs to yell?"

The Dominicana nodded. Carl did too. "We promised to never argue in front of him."

Michonne frowned. "So you argue in front of my baby instead." Judith was wrong. Boys weren't dumb, teenagers were.

The noises the house made put fear into the younger members of the Grimes family. Miles was latched to his mother, asleep and unaware. Judith was curled onto hers. She was wide awake; she was uneasy, but mildly soothed by Michonne's touch. Chenelle wasn't as unwound as Judith, but she too remembered the last major storm. Carl wasn't concerned. He sharpened his blades paying no heed to his family nor the storm. He was totally contrasted from Rick. They were the only thing on his mind. The lights flickered and eventually went out. Judith whimpered.

Carl stopped what he was doing and waited for his eyes to adjust. He put his knives away and joined everyone. Nobody said anything for several minutes surprisingly, Michonne broke the silence. "When I was younger, this was how we would deal with storms. My parents cut off everything electrical and made us sit quietly during the storm."

"Really?" Carl asked. Michonne confirmed. He smirked. "Lame."

"Oh shut up." Michonne hissed with laughter. "Then what did you do cool one?"

"I don't know. I guess pretty much the same as this. Kill time, wait for it to be over. Mostly watch TV I guess."

"Me too," Chenelle said.

"I miss Ben 10."

Michonne gasped in delight. "I really enjoyed that series. My nephew's third birthday party was a premiere party for their last movie."

"Kianga had a son too?" Carl frowned in the dark. Where was Michonne's nephew now?

"No, she never wanted children. I had... have an older sister. As for our preferences, we belonged to Shonda Rhimes."

"Who's that?" Rick asked confused.

Michonne groaned. "Jesus, Rick. You've never heard of Shondaland? Grey's Anatomy? Scandal?"

"Mom used to watch Grey's Anatomy," Carl realized. Maybe his musings in the Savior's truck had been right; Lori sent Michonne to them.

"It was such a good show. ...I guess I'll have to make up an ending."

Rick shook his head. "Nah, you don't have to. Ezekiel and his people could probably end it for you. They literally live on a stage."

They continued talking about old television, movies, and other tidbits of small conversation. They eventually went upstairs and got in their beds. Judith didn't leave Michonne's side. Rick was forced to make room for the little one on their bed. Michonne and Rick stared at each other longingly. This was the moment they'd wanted earlier but miscalculated. Rick wanted to kiss her skin starting from her neck. He wanted to lay over her, his hand traveling her body. He wanted to be inside her and connect. She'd shared so much of her past today. She was opening up; she was healing and on her way to fully trusting him. This meant more than sex. "She's sleep. Meet me in the bathroom." But that didn't mean sex was invalid. After their quickie, Rick and Michonne smiled at each other before drifting to sleep.

A loud crash woke the entire house. Rick signaled for Michonne to stay where she was. He took a flashlight and went to investigate. Carl was already out in the hall with his weapon. There wasn't a need for it; the crash had come from outside the house. The wind continued to howl; the rain beat mercilessly on the roof. The house creaked from the strain. Rick shined the light on the ceiling to see if there were any leaks or cracks. He found a small water spot at the end of the hall, but it had yet to leak. The Grimes men slowly made their way downstairs but stopped midway. Their roof may have held, but the sealant in their walls didn't. The first floor was flooded. Fourteen inches of floodwater stopped them in their tracks. Carl looked at Rick wondering what to do; Rick looked annoyed, but not scared. They would have to wait for the waters to lower. They were stuck on the second floor, but it didn't cause alarm. They'd lived in more humble accommodations. Rick did wonder what caused that deafening crash. He'd investigate as soon as the storm passed.

Once the storm passed they realized the church had broken the wall. Zombies have shuffled toward the noise in mass, however, the floodwaters slowed them down drastically. The people of Alexandria took back their city; working just as well together as when they prepared. They started to build a routine again. They propped their wall up, but it wasn't sturdy. They wondered how they're going to rebuild without Reg. Disposal of the walkers' bodies was also a problem due to low accelerant and a wet atmosphere. The damage and washed out roads made it difficult to scavenge in larger groups. Daryl didn't need a car; he would go hunting without one. They were running low on food. The electricity was still not on. Worse of all, morale was low. They were no longer blind. Despite the storm and the washed out road, they knew that the Saviors will be there eventually.

But they had nothing to give.

(A/N) I am sorry for how long this took to come out. It never was my intention to leave this story for so long. I let a lot of personal stuff blind me. I just posted what I had (that last paragraph was supposed to be many). I am very disappointed in this chapter. Thank you for your concerns; it meant a lot.

Next Chapter: When the roads prevent the Saviors from pillaging Alexandria for over a month, dynamics in each group shift.